The preseason is starting to wind down and teams have made their first cut down to 75. Week 3 of the preseason has long been considered a “dress rehearsal”. This is the week of the preseason that most resembles a real game, well for a half anyway, as teams starters usually play 25 to 30 plays . As teams continue to evaluate talent as they prepare for the NFL season, fantasy football owners continue to study the 2008 Bruno Boys Fantasy Football Cheat Sheets as we prepare for the 2008 Fantasy Football season. Now because this week is probably the most important week of the preseason, for the NFL and fantasy football owners alike the Bruno Boys have decided to change up this week’s Preseason Rundown. Of course it will still be fantasy-style and it will of course have the Bruno Boys flavor, but instead of only hitting on five or six players we are going to give you a recap of all 16 games in Week 3. It will be broken down into three different editions, so make sure you you get your fill by checking out all three parts.
Enjoy Part Three of Week 3’s version of the Bruno Boys Preseason Rundown (fantasy-style).
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Baltimore Ravens vs. St. Louis Rams
Baltimore rookie QB Joe Flacco played the entire game and was 18 for 37 passing for 152 yards and 1TD. Don’t get overly excited and run out and pick-up Flacco, up until this game he was the team’s third string QB. Second year man Troy Smith appears to be the front-runner for the starting job. Smith seemed to have the slight edge over Kyle Boller, before the news that Boller has a serious shoulder injury and will probably miss the entire season. Smith was expected to play at least three quarters of the game, but came down with a viral illness and was kept at the team’s hotel. If Smith starts the season at QB his value will go up, but he is still a QB3 until he can prove his value on the field. Veteran WR Derrick Mason had 6 catches for 85 yards and 1 TD in the game. He is the team’s number one wide out and should be used as a solid WR3.
St. Louis QB Marc Bulger went 18 for 25 passing for 182 yards and 2 TD’s. This also marked the first time in 11 preseason games that the Ram’s first team offense has scored a TD. Bulger who is looking to rebound from an injury plagued 2007 is the #10 QB ranked by the Bruno Boys and should be considered a low-end QB1. RB Steven Jackson did not play in the game, as the Rams are not rushing him after a lengthy holdout. Jackson is the #4 RB ranked by the Bruno Boys and should be ready to start the regular season and is a top RB1 option. Veteran WR Torry Holt played in the game and had 4 catches for 38 yards. Holt is entering his 10th season in the league and is the #10 ranked WR in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets. He is a low-end WR1, who has had over 1,000 yards in eight straight seasons.
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Minnesota Vikings vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Minnesota is another team that sat some of their skilled players in their third preseason game. QB Tarvaris Jackson (knee) and receivers Bernard Berrian (toe) and Sidney Rice (virus) all missed the game. RB Adrian Peterson did play and had 12 carries for 21 yards and 1 TD in what turned out to be a defensive battle. Peterson is the #2 ranked RB in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets and is a top flight RB1 as he looks to improve on his fantastic rookie season. Gus Frerotte played 2 1⁄2 quarters and was 13 for 19 passing for 133 yards with 1 interception. He has very little fantasy value as Jackson is expected to be ready to start the season at QB. Jackson is the #25 ranked QB by the Bruno Boys and should be considered a low end QB2.
QB Ben Roethlisberger was pressured quite a bit in the game and was 10 for 17 passing for 65 yards in less then a half of play. Roethlisberger who looks to prove he is worth the big contract extension he signed in the off-season, is the #6 ranked QB by the Bruno Boys and should be a solid QB1 option this season. RB Willie Parker had 10 carries for 18 yards while rookie RB Rashard Mendenhall had 15 carries for 79 yards. Be careful before you get too high on the rookie though as he did fumble twice in the game. Parker who is the # 21 ranked RB in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets should be the primary back and should get more than 1,000 yards once again. Consider Parker a WR2, as he should lose carries to Mendenhall (ranked #32) especially at the goal line.
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Arizona Cardinals vs. Oakland Raiders
Matt Leinart seemed to have the edge at the starting QB job over Kurt Warner heading into this game. That edge may have slipped away. Leinart was 4 for 12 passing for 24 yards with 3 interceptions. It is still unclear who will start the season opener for the Cards. The Bruno Boys have Warner ranked #117 and Leinart ranked #118 on the most updated Top 150 Cheat Sheet, but it may take until the start of the season to know who will start, so don’t plan on either being anything more then a backup at this time. Disgruntled WR Anquan Boldin had 3 catches for 54 yards in the game. Boldin who asked the team for a trade appears to be ready to play anyway. He is the #13 WR in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets and is a top WR2 option as he is playing for a new contract, either from the Cards or another team.
Second year QB JaMarcus Russell was 14 for 28 passing for 140 yards with 1 interception in the game. Russell who is the team’s new starter in 2008 is the #26 ranked QB by the Bruno Boys is a QB3 at this time, as he should experience some growing pains in Oakland. Rookie RB Darren McFadden had 12 carries for 40 yards in the game and is the #22 ranked RB by the Bruno Boys. Consider him a RB3, but he could become an RB2 by season’s end if Oakland can show any overall consistency on offense. WR Javon Walker had 4 catches for 60 yards in the game, but this is the same guy that had to be talked out of retirement by Raiders Owner Al Davis during camp. Walker is the #44 ranked QB in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets and until he can prove his head is in the game should be considered a low end WR4.
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Buffalo Bills vs. Indianapolis Colts
Buffalo QB J.P. Losman was 13 for 19 for 108 yards in the game subbing for Trent Edwards who had a bruised knee and had only one pass in the game. Edwards’ injury does not appear to be serious and he is expected to be the starting QB. Edwards is the #24 ranked QB in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets and is a low end QB2. Losman does not have much fantasy value at this time. RB Marshawn Lynch only had 4 carries for 2 yards in the game. Lynch is the #8 ranked RB by the Bruno Boys and despite the poor numbers in this game, is a solid RB1 option. WR Lee Evans had 5 catches for 44 yards in the game and is the #19 ranked WR by the Bruno Boys. He may not be much more then a WR3 until Edwards proves to be a solid QB.
RB Joseph Addai had 5 carries for 23 yards in the game and is the # 5 ranked QB in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets. Addai disappeared a little at the end of the season last year and cost some fantasy owners in the playoffs. He still has been a top RB in his first two seasons and he should continue to improve. Consider him a top RB1 option. TE Dallas Clark had 2 catches for 22 yards in the game. Clark is the #5 ranked TE by the Bruno Boys and should be considered a TE1 in this Colts offense that loves the TE. QB Peyton Manning did not play once again as he recovers from knee surgery in July. Manning has practiced this week and has not reported any swelling in the knee. He appears to be on target to start the regular season opener. Manning is the #2 QB in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets and it looks to be safe to plug him into your starting line up.
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San Diego Chargers vs. Seattle Seahawks
San Diego once again played this game without star RB LaDainian Tomlinson. He is not injured and the Chargers prefer to keep it that way. Tomlinson will be the starting RB when the regular season kicks off. He is the #1 RB in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets and he is the #1 player on the Bruno Boys Top 150 Cheat Sheet. He is the best player in the game and the top fantasy option. Darren Sproles made a strong bid to take over for Michael Turner (now in Atlanta) as Tomlinson’s primary backup. Sproles had 13 carries for 102 yards and 1 TD in the game. Playing behind the best RB in the game does not offer much fantasy value, but he could become a nice handcuff for Tomlinson owners.
Seattle QB Charlie Frye was 19 for 29 passing for 219 yards with 2 TD’s. Even though he had a nice day Frye does not have any fantasy value as he is the third string QB for the Seahawks behind Matt Hasselbeck and Seneca Wallace. Hasselbeck has missed most of the preseason with a stiff back, but is expected to be ready to start the regular season. He is the #9 QB in the Bruno Boys Cheat Sheets and is a low end QB1 option, but if you have Hasselbeck you might want to have a similarly valued QB on your roster and play the best match-up. WR Nate Burleson had only 1 catch in the game, but it was for a 65 yard TD. Burleson is the team’s #1 receiver at this time with injuries to Bobby Engram and Deion Branch. Burleson is the #37 ranked WR by the Bruno Boys and should be considered a low end WR3 or high end WR4.
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Keep checking back with the Bruno Boys as the preseason winds down for the most up to date player information available on the Internet as you prepare for Fantasy Football 2008.
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NFL Preseason Rundown (Fantasy Style) Week 3 Games (Part 1)
NFL Preseason Rundown (Fantasy Style) Week 3 Games (Part 2)
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